New record review: The Strokes 'The New Abnormal'

The Strokes are back to bring some much-needed chill to the chaos of the world with the band’s first album in seven years, the somewhat prophetically titled “The New Abnormal.”

It’s appropriate that the Strokes, a band that rose in the shadow of one of the country’s most chaotic times, have returned today. The New York band’s first album, “Is This It,” surfaced on CD in the U.S. after the Sept. 11 attacks. The CD, the preferred format of the time, was delayed for release due to its “sexually explicit” cover, and the song “New York City Cops” was scrubbed from the post-9/11 track list. 

Of course, the delay didn’t stop the Strokes’ trajectory. Over the course of five albums, the band perfected its sound when so many other bands of the late '90s/early 2000s garage rock/post-punk revival stalled or faded away.

In 2020, the Strokes have released an album that sounds like the Strokes at their catchiest, produced by Rick Rubin, to boot. It’s a shame that the band members are quarantined like the rest of us, promoting the album via a Zoom listening session instead of onstage.

But as Julian Casablancas sings, “life is such a funny journey.” The song in question, "Eternal Summer," is perhaps the album’s best and most adventurous track, with Casablancas choosing to use his falsetto instead of his trademark croon. (It also samples the Psychedelic Furs’ '80s gem “Ghost in You.”) "At the Door" is reminiscent of "80s Comedown Machine," the best and most experimental song on the band's previous full-length album, "Comedown Machine."

Still, it’s comforting to hear that Casablancas croon alongside an Albert Hammond Jr. riff, and “The New Abnormal” delivers plenty of those moments. “Why Are Sundays So Depressing” and “Not the Same Anymore” are perhaps the most classic-sounding Strokes tracks here. 

The new wave side of the Strokes is apparent on “The New Abnormal,” too, and it’s as appealing as ever. The chorus of “Bad Decisions” sounds so much like “Dancing With Myself” that ’80s icon Billy Idol gets a writing credit. On “Brooklyn Bridge to Chorus,” Casblancas even asks: “And the eighties bands? Oh, where did they go?” 

The album closes with “Ode to the Mets,” a sad tribute to the baseball team, or perhaps anything that lets one down. “The New Abnormal” is not one of those things.

There are so many cool elements on the album, perhaps none more so than in “Ode to the Mets” when Casablancas interjects mid-song, “Drums please, Fab.” 

Moments like those make it seem like the Strokes have never been more content to just be the Strokes. Hopefully, when this is all over, they still are, because the world still really needs them.

At top, the album cover features the Jean-Michel Basquiat painting "Bird on Money" circa 1981. (Cult and RCA Records)

New record review: The Buttertones deliver soothing anthems for our time on 'Jazzhound'

2020: It was a year that started out with promise.

For the Buttertones, and for the rest of the world, this year was supposed to be so much better than 2019. For the band, last year held the departure of one member, a health scare for another, and a canceled tour. 

But as 2020 began, the Buttertones had emerged from all of that to open a tour for the veteran act the Reverend Horton Heat, and then had a headlining tour lined up in support of the band’s first album in more than two years. 

Well, we all know what has happened now. 

A pandemic has postponed the Buttertones’ tour and countless others. Albums have been shelved, and musicians’ and fans’ lives have been turned upside down. 

But thankfully, we still have the Buttertones, and the band’s new album, “Jazzhound” (Innovative Leisure) may be just what the world needs now. Music can heal, and Richard Arazia with his buttery-smooth baritone and his band are here to soothe us.

The band recorded the album last November at Electro-Vox and Jazzcats studios, with producer Jonny Bell once again at the helm. Araiza has described the album as poppy, saying it's titled “Jazzhound” because “Pophound” just didn’t have the same ring to it. 

As the singles dropped, fans could tell this album was going to be one of the Buttertones’ best. The title track is a glorious realization of the band’s foray into post-punk started on “Midnight in a Moonless Dream” and continued on the standalone single "Madame Supreme." “Fade Away Gently” is an anthem for our time, culminating with Araiza singing, “Loneliness. Fuck loneliness.”

The latest single, “Phantom Eyes,” gets the album off to a cracking start. It’s irresistible, along with much of “Jazzhound.” Sean Redman’s bass lines are catchier than ever. Longtime drummer Modeste Cobian makes the seamless transition to guitar, lending jangly riffs throughout. London Guzman provides the link to the band’s past with his saxophone, and the future, with his keyboards. His sax is in the spotlight on songs like “Bebop” and “Velour,” which perhaps sound the most like the Buttertones of old, with added punch.

Although much of the music is upbeat, there is an air of sadness throughout Araiza’s lyrics. He sings of dreams fading away (“Fade Away Gently”), and of crying “out alone in the night” (“Rise and Shine”). On “Denial, You Win Again,” with resignation he proclaims, “I’ll happily lose to you.”

The Buttertones may just be taking up the “happy-sad” mantle of post-punk icons the Cure. It’s a future worth being excited about.

After all of this is over, bands will tour again. As for the Buttertones, they're hoping they can be back out on the road in the summer. 

But until we emerge from the darkness, music like “Jazzhound” will be there, to soothe us and show us the promise of a better future.

The Buttertones treat fans to smooth sounds, new songs in Denver

After a challenging 2019, the Buttertones are back, kicking off 2020 with a coveted opening slot on the revered Reverend Horton Heat’s latest tour.

This spring, the Buttertones will release a long-awaited new album. Nearly two years will have passed since the release of the band’s fourth album, “Midnight in a Moonless Dream.” It probably wasn’t planned that way.

Last year, longtime guitarist Dakota Böttcher departed the band. Then, drummer Modeste “Cobi” Cobián had to undergo a cornea transplant after suffering an eye injury and infection. The band was forced to cancel its U.S. tour.

But the band has risen above those challenges. The new album, “Jazzhound,” is due April 10. Cobián has made the seamless move to guitar — and rocks a killer eyepatch to boot. A new drummer, Grant Snyder, is on board as the band plays its first U.S. tour of the year with the Reverend Horton Heat.

Photos by Christopher Windle

The Buttertones are impressing fans of the veteran rockabilly act with old and new songs. On Feb. 13 at the first of three shows with the Reverend at the Bluebird Theater in Denver, the band played three tracks from “Jazzhound.”

According to singer Richard Araiza, the album has some of the darker elements exhibited on “Midnight.” But after listening to the new songs and how well they fit into the setlist, there’s also plenty of the classic Buttertones sound to be heard to please fans of the band’s first three albums.

The Buttertones opened the set with the first single off “Midnight,” “Baby C4,” then launched into “Velour,” one of the three new tracks. The band was a flurry of manic energy through the first third of the set, which was designed to grab the audience’s attention. The next songs, as Araiza said, were to win the crowd’s hearts.

Another new song, the gorgeous “Denial, You Win Again” was sprinkled in among slower songs like “Baby Doll.” “Bebop” was sandwiched nicely between early Buttertones track “Orpheus Under the Influence” and the rousing “Ghost Safari.”

The band’s members haven’t even reached their 30s, but they already have an impressive back catalog. Could it be that the Buttertones have defined their sound?

Over the band’s four albums so far, there have been forays into surf, rockabilly, and even new wave. Araiza’s voice is the factor that helps bridge those musical styles. Sean Redman’s bass grooves are a constant; so are London Guzmán’s distinctive stylings on saxophone, and increasingly, keyboards.

The band closed out the concert with a trio of songs off “Gravedigging.” If there were still doubters in the crowd in “old Colorado,” they were silenced, literally, by “Sadie’s a Sadist,” “Matador,” and “Gravediggin.’”

After a tough year, the Buttertones have kept on going, going, going — and they’re still growing as a band.

Top five live shows of 2019

The Damned and X

Two bands that have been around for more than 40 years, the Damned and X, proved that they're still going strong at their show at Chicago's House of Blues in May. X, with its lineup of four original members, played several of its best-known songs while sounding great and having fun. The Damned's Dave Vanian and Captain Sensible, the two original members of the band, were joined by bassist Paul Gray to play the masterpiece album "Machine Gun Etiquette" in its entirety. The band ventured on to a second set of well-known songs and rarities, playing 22 tracks and two encores in all. It's rare to see not one, but two, bands that have been around for more than 40 years. To see two such bands that appear to still be having a blast doing it, well, that's pretty amazing.
Read more: The Damned and X show their punk rock staying power

Photos by Christopher Windle.

The Faint with Closeness

The Faint returned to its hometown of Omaha for a packed show at the Waiting Room in May. Closeness (pictured), Faint frontman Todd Fink's group with his wife, Orenda Fink, warmed up the audience. The Faint later stormed onstage, playing songs from new album "Egowerk" as well as the best of its back catalog of six other studio albums. The show was an intense, high-energy thrill ride, and the audience didn't want it to end.
Read more: The Faint displays the best of Omaha

The Psychedelic Furs

The Psychedelic Furs' touring machine roared into the Truman in Kansas City in May, and it was clear that the band was there to show the crowd a good time. Though the Furs got a bit political with "President Gas," the show was mainly a time to party. Like the best first wave '80s artists, the Furs offer music that fans can escape to. And the world could use an escape right now. So the Furs delivered, playing hits like "Heaven" and "Pretty in Pink." The band has since added new music to its live show and has a long-awaited new album on the way in 2020.
Read more: The Psychedelic Furs at the Truman

Clan of Xymox

The U.S. government shutdown early this year had effects that reverberated through all walks of life, including the goth/darkwave community, when Clan of Xymox was forced to postpone its U.S. tour because of delays in processing the band's visas. But the tour dates set for this past spring finally happened, with the U.S. stint by the Germany-based band beginning in Denver and hitting Omaha in November. The band proved that its delayed U.S. tour was well worth the wait. Bolstered by opening band the Bellwether Syndicate, Clan of Xymox had the crowd dancing, singing along, and even laughing to frontman Ronny Moorings' droll insights.
Read more: Clan of Xymox, at last, brings show back to U.S.

L7

The all-female grunge band brought its powerful live show to Omaha in June. The crowd at the Slowdown was treated to a 21-song set of hits and fan favorites from the band's longest-standing lineup of Suzi Gardner, Donita Sparks, Dee Plakas, and Jennifer Finch. Gardner, Sparks, and Finch took turns singing lead, performing songs like "Andres," "Dispatch from Mar-a-Lago," "Shitlist," and "Pretend We're Dead."

Honorable mentions: T.S.O.L., Interpol, the Descendents, Wilco.

Duran Duran's top moments of 2019

Duranlive

Duran Duran kicked off its 2019 tour dates in Miami, performing gems like "The Seventh Stranger" (for the first time since 1984),  "New Religion," and "Friends of Mine." The band would go on to play two dates for Kaaboo, in the Cayman Islands and San Diego, and traveled to Iceland, among other touring highlights.

Record Store Day

Duran gave a nod to its past with a double-album release for April's Record Store Day with "As the Lights Go Down." Thirty-five years after the band's shows in Oakland, California, for the Sing Blue Silver tour were recorded for posterity, fans lined up again to get a limited-edition copy of the performance on candy-colored vinyl. "As the Lights Go Down" was originally used as the name of the edited version of the concert film "Arena" that aired on Cinemax back in the day.

NASA concert

Over the summer, Duran played a show for the anniversary of the Apollo mission. The band fittingly went with a space theme, playing "Planet Earth" and "Space Oddity" from its standard setlist, but also dusting off lesser-played tracks like "Astronaut." Duran also tried its hand at a space-themed cover song, "Walking on the Moon" by the Police. It was a magical night for the band and its fans that began with another surprise: the band taking the stage as drones put on a light show overhead, opening with "The Universe Alone."

A night inducting Roxy

In March, John Taylor and Simon Le Bon had the honor of inducting into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Roxy Music, perhaps the band on planet Earth that has influenced Duran Duran most. In their induction speech, Simon described Roxy's music as "a shock to the system. ... The musicians themselves were dressed outrageously, each one with an individual, well-defined look."

"Put it all together, and what you got was pulp science fiction."

John continued by saying that Roxy made him realize "what I wanted to be. I knew my destiny. ... I am always proud to say that without Roxy Music, there would be no Duran Duran."

DD15

Signs point to the band's 15th studio album surfacing next year, perhaps in late spring or early summer. The band spent time in the recording studio in 2019 with super producer Mark Ronson and two likely guest musicians, Blur's Graham Coxon and singer Lykke Li. The band has announced two tour dates in June: a headlining spot at the Isle of Wight festival and a show at St. Anne's Park, "in support of the release of their next studio album." Although details have been scant of late, it does look likely that Duran will be releasing new material in the next six months or so, fingers crossed.

Photo by Christopher Windle

On ‘Wilco Wednesday,’ Tweedy and Co. show how it’s done

It was “Wilco Wednesday” in Omaha on Nov. 20 as the band returned to the state for the second time in a little more than two years.

The band last played an outdoor venue in Lincoln (Wilco launches fall tour), and this time, took its show indoors for a concert at the ornate Orpheum Theater. The band played several songs from its latest album, “Ode to Joy,” while still managing to touch on every era of its career.

The new album is moody and introspective, a showcase for vocalist Jeff Tweedy’s lyrics and Glenn Kotche’s drumming. Songs like concert openers “Bright Leaves” and “Before Us” chug along like the trains from Tweedy’s childhood. The singer’s father worked on the railroad, a topic he writes about in his recent autobiography “Let’s Go (So We Can Get Back).”

Photos by Christopher Windle.

But the show really picked up steam when Wilco played songs off its masterpiece, “Yankee Hotel Foxtrot.” The audience sang along with “Jesus, Etc.,” “I Am Trying to Break Your Heart,”
and “War On War,” a song the band had skipped playing at its last show in the state.

Around the middle of the set, Wilco threw in another highlight it hadn’t played before, the thrilling “Bull Black Nova.” Fittingly, it played the track about vehicular manslaughter right after another dark song, the dreams-of-murder ballad “Via Chicago.”

There were less moody moments, too, like when Tweedy put his guitar aside for the upbeat “Hummingbird,” or when guitarist Nels Cline let loose on “Impossible Germany,” playing a solo somehow different from but still as great as the one on record.

Most of the last third of the show consisted of “rock songs,” including recent single “Everyone Hides,” “I’m the Man Who Loves You,” and a rousing “Misunderstood.”

Despite already having played 26 songs, the band came back for an encore: “I’m Always In Love,” “California Stars,” and “The Late Greats.”

It was “Wilco Wednesday,” as Tweedy said, “like taco Tuesday, but with Wilco.”

But it was much more than that. It was a brilliant show by a band that has been around for 25 years and just keeps on delivering.

New record review: The Damned ‘Black Is the Night’

The Damned, in its fifth decade of existence, didn’t have an official best-of anthology until early this month. But “Black Is the Night: The Definitive Anthology” (BMG) is finally here, and it’s magnificent.

Spanning two discs, or four LPs, the anthology features 39 songs, from the first British punk rock  single, “New Rose,” to the band’s most recent single, “Black Is the Night.” The new song is a sweetener for seasoned fans; other than that track, “Disco Man,” and “Fun Factory,” the other songs are all available on the band’s studio albums or rereleased version of those records.

Still, there’s a lot here to like for fans new and old. I fall somewhere in between, having gotten heavily into the Damned a few years ago and promptly purchasing the band’s entire studio discography. For music fans feeling curious about the Damned but not knowing where to start, “Black Is the Night” is the perfect gateway.

The anthology lays out how the Damned is best enjoyed. Instead of a chronological track listing, the album is more like a playlist arranged by tempo and mood. The first disc is composed of early songs that helped define punk and post-punk: “Love Song,” “Wait for the Blackout,” “Ignite,” and “Smash It Up” among them. A “newer” song “Democracy?” fits right in, with a timely political message to boot. The Brian James years are neatly compartmentalized on disc one.

While the first disc captures the rapid-fire energy of the band’s live show (The Damned shows punk rock staying power in Chicago), disc two shows the Damned’s theatrical and artistic side. “Eloise” still sounds as amazing as when the band was climbing to near the top of the pop charts, and “Grimly Fiendish” deliciously marks the band’s foray into goth. The centerpiece is the majestic “Curtain Call,” all 17 minutes and 10 seconds of it demonstrating that the Damned was a true musical force, one that could still be kicking around four decades later.

The band shows that it’s survived, and thrived, with recent single “Standing On the Edge of Tomorrow” and the “Black Album”-tinged title track. Both are written by singer Dave Vanian, at a creative peak of late.

Who know what’s next for the Damned? The band brought “A Night of a Thousand Vampires” to the London Palladium, and Vanian (who shaved his head mid-set to portray Nosferatu) has hinted the band may hit the road with a version of that show.

Longtime drummer Pinch departed the band after the show. But with Vanian, dynamic guitar and bass duo Captain Sensible and Paul Gray, and the ever-entertaining Monty Oxymoron onboard, it’s not a stretch to say the Damned might be around to celebrate its 50th anniversary in a few years. It’s a thrilling thought, indeed.